, generally would find it too much for him.

The next day our friends were taken on a drive through some of the
parks, of which Sydney has a liberal supply. Most of the parks are of
considerable extent, one of them, called the Domain, occupying one
hundred acres of ground on the shore of one of the coves. Other parks
are projected, and it was evident to Harry and Ned that the authorities
of Sydney were thorough believers in having plenty of breathing space
for the people.

The drive included the Botanical Gardens, which proved to be full of
interest. Nearly every plant and tree of the whole of Australia is
represented in the Botanical Gardens, and there are many trees and
plants there from other parts of the world. Everything planted in these
gardens seems to thrive, the products of high latitudes growing side by
side to those of very low ones.

The Botanical Gardens are not of recent origin, some of the trees they
contain having been planted there seventy or eighty years ago. Among
these trees are Norfolk pines, which have attained a height of one
hundred feet, and a diameter of five feet at the base. Dr. Whitney had
visited the pine forests of California, and said that the specimens in
the Botanical Gardens at Sydney reminded him of the magnificent trees of
the Golden State.

At one place during their visit to the gardens Ned observed the smell of
musk, and looked around to ascertain whence it came. The gentleman who
accompanied him noted his curiosity and said:--

"I think you are looking for the musk tree. Here it is."

And there it was, sure enough. The tree is a product of Australia, and
has the peculiarity of constantly giving out the odor of musk, which is
perceptible at quite a distance. Ned asked if any perfume was
manufactured from the tree or its leaves, and was answered in the
negative.

All the parks of the city appeared to be tastefully laid out and well
kept. Ned recalled the numerous parks that they saw at Melbourne, and
remarked that neither city had occasion to be jealous of the other in
the matter of pleasant resorts for the people.

Our young friends asked if any of the prisons or other buildings that
were erected at the time of the settlement of Sydney were still in
existence.

"There is hardly a trace of any of them," was the reply. "As the city
has grown, the old buildings have been destroyed, to make place for new
ones of a more substantial character. One of the churches occupies the